City girl finds way to show rabbits at Victoria Livestock Show

Rebecca Moore, 17, of Victoria, holds one of the rabbits she plans to show at the 2014 Victoria Livestock Show. This is Rebecca's first year to raise rabbits. She decided to compete because a friend who raises rabbits helped her through the process.
Tess Freeman
for The Victoria Advocate

If You Go

• 8:30 a.m. Thursday Market Rabbit Show

• 1:30 p.m. Thursday Breeding Rabbit Show

Rebecca Moore, 17, always wanted to be a part of the Future Farmers of America, but the Victoria West High School junior didn't know what she could raise living in the city.

"Originally, I thought about chickens - but they're dirty," she said. "I never really knew what I wanted to do."

After learning about rabbits from a friend, Rebecca used her own money to purchase a male and female rabbit - a buck and a doe - built a cage in her backyard and prepared the couple to mate.

But there was a problem: The two would not procreate, and her buck became ill and died. With the help of her friend - the one with the rabbits - she was able to mate her doe, Mrs. Kay, and ended up with four baby rabbits.

To present at the Victoria Livestock Show, Rebecca said exhibitors have to have four rabbits, three to show and one alternate.

"I'm taking everything I have to the show," she said.

Rebecca ran her hand around the back of one of her rabbits to show off what the judges would look for - wide hips and the more meat, the better, she said.

She went into raising the rabbits knowing that the three she shows will not return home with her.

"You have to go in knowing they're not going to be fluffy little pets," Rebecca said. "They're meat animals."

Her mother, Tamra Denoyer, 40, said her daughter has always had an outdoors mentality, saying that she hunts and shoots.

Rebecca said she plans to raise more rabbits after the livestock show. If her returning rabbit is a male, she said she'll mate it with its mother. If it's a female, she said she'll sell her or use her as a second doe for next year's show.

"It's been a really good experience - I've wanted to do it since I was a little girl," Rebecca said. "It's something I can check off my bucket list."